Since the release of their E.P. in 2008, Red Bee have become one of the most technical, melodic and exciting bands the Australian underground hard rock/metal scene has to offer.  The delivery of their almighty debut album Ictus, a hectic live schedule and focused ambition has culminated in them landing a support slot for platinum selling US hard rock band Flyleaf this August.

 

“Red Bee are simply a must-see for ANY metal-head, period.  They have a very unique sound - something I have never heard before from any band.  Combining catchy hooks and melodic vocals with an aggressive, progressive and distinctly METAL sound, their live performances leave you with an experience that isn’t easily forgotten.  And they have chops that will leave even the most seasoned musicians speechless.”

-       Dearhead Press

 

Lying somewhere between the fuzzy borders of punk, hard rock, prog and metal, Red Bee is Daniel Silk (vocalist/guitarist), Jim Silk (bassist) and Ian Dunn (drummer).  From a young age, brothers Daniel and Jim have shared a deep musical connection through their love of the dark, genre-defying works of an eclectic range of artists, including The Dillinger Escape Plan, Mr Bungle, Stanley Kubrick, Hunter S. Thompson and Charles Bukowski.  With the introduction to Ian Dunn, they found a third brother with aligned inspirations and a common purpose: to forge new musical boundaries.

 

Quick to dispense with formulaic rhythms and time signatures, Red Bee creates every song differently.  All three members co-write songs and lyrics; every Ictus track bears the compositional mark of each individual.  The result is an incredibly tight live band that hits the stage with an explosive, atmospheric energy.  Delivering big slabs of Slayer-like riffage, complex melodies, huge harmonies, and an all powerful spine of rhythm, Red Bee blows the minds of their audiences and leaves them with sore neck muscles the next morning.

Funk and groove is injected into the band’s sound amid their odd time signatures and staccato blasts of intricate fury.  The vocals coursing exuberantly and aggressively over the top are more akin to bands such as Faith No More and Mastodon than the usual howling or brutal/melodic trade-off.

 

Recorded with Clayton Segelov (The Dillinger Escape Plan, Lamb of God, Tomahawk, The Angels) at The Brain Studios in Surry Hills, Red Bee’s Ictus has been met with rave reviews:

“Red Bee’s debut album Ictus is possibly the most enormous sonic blast I have heard from a three-piece in quite some time.

Ictus is an outstanding debut that feels like it has been crafted with the Midas Touch.The production is monstrous, the instrumentation is tight and the songs are wickedly infectious. All self-respecting metal/rock fans should add this album to their collection immediately – it’s a keeper.”

-       Rod Sedgwick, LOUD magazine

“Red Bee’s music is hot as hell and has a real sting in the tail. Ictus is yet another killer Aussie heavy music release, and extremely worthy of your attention. The album’s razor sharp playing and production give this album an unbeatable sheen of professionalism and a world-class quality.”

-       Rod Whitfield, Sludge Factory

Red Bee is authentically Australian - both sonically and in their hard-work approach to recording.  Daniel’s vocals are delivered with a refreshing Aussie accent - a touch of Frenzal Rhomb’s punk style blended with Cog's anthemic, soulful renderings.  Ictus does not have any looping or studio trickery; all tracks were only allowed to be mastered following perfect live performances by each band member in the studio.

 

Lyrically, Ictus is an album that tells the story of one fictitious man’s fall into degeneracy and despair.   Through his hopes, fears, trials, tribulations, victories and defeats, he seeks to find his own path through the black void. 

Ictus opens proceedings with ‘Road Kill’, making no apologies for its aural assault.  ‘Dark Daze’ follows, featuring more pummelling riffs, booming bass lines and precision, quick-fire drumming - with an astounding demonstration of different time signatures.  What initially seems like an album full of short, sharp, gritty tracks is actually some technically progressive art merely masquerading as such… with an emotional punch.  Witness the gnarled, twisted and almost punk riffs of ‘Deathbed Memory’; the breakneck speed blast of ‘Confess, Conform, Collapse’; the fat grooves of ’10-4’; the instrumental, blistering epic that is ‘Angelo’s School of Arms’: filthy, fast and tremulous complete with a clean melodic passage; the turbo-charged, furious, bludgeoning riffs, ranging from death-core to punk, of ‘Thin Red Line’; the haunting musical journey of complex harmony and discord in ‘Poetic Equation’ (evoking Faith No More at their peak); the unforgiving ‘Through to You’; and the truly epic closing track ‘Hell & Fire.’

Ictus is just the beginning … Red Bee will always push themselves to be faster, heavier and more innovative; they are comrades relentless in their pursuit of musical growth and perfection.